Are there any SongFighters going to be on the 2018 JoCo Cruise? I'm hosting a panel again this year, with an emphasis on how artists take on a challenge prompt in their creative process. Scheduled to appear are SpinTunes artists Brian Gray, Zoe Gray, Spenser Sokol and Nur Ein participant Glen Raphael.

MC Frontalot will be on the boat performing as the opening act for the on land Loreto concert - It'll be nice to catch up with him - haven't seen him in a while.

Time got away from me in asking for contributions to a SongFight lp - I'm cobbling a ST sampler disk and having it online like last year as a fun freebie for the audience.

Here's the official blurb going in the schedule. +++

SpinTunes Songwriting Challenge: Artists and Inspirations

SpinTunes panelists discuss their thoughts on song creation when using a challenge prompt as inspiration. They'll give insight on their work process, and workshop a new song idea with audience participation.

I did get a chance to chat with Frontalot. We talked about SongFight, and he has a great fondness for the place. He was the opening act for the Loreto concerts, and also did an amazing 'Worst Chapter Ever' reading with other authors on the boat.

I'm probably going on again in 2019, which is coming back to the East Coast with stops in the Bahamas, Tortola and San Juan.

Cool. How did you get your panel in the schedule? I would love to go one of these years. Not sure if it would be presumptuous of me as the johnny-come-lately fightmaster but I wonder if a similar thing for Song Fight could go over OK? Song Fight's got 10 years seniority on Spin Tunes. I wonder if Song Fight is the oldest continuously running songwriting contest on the Internet...?

I'm sure you could do a panel. I just request a room in advance and they schedule it for me, and put it in the listings. Any person on the cruise can do a shadow event if it fits guidelines. (free to attend, no sales) They even will supply a PA/mics, TV for powerpoint, etc. Several of the panelists held their own shadow concerts. It's about a 3:1 radio to shadow events to main acts.

I'd love to host something SongFight related, but I wasn't aware many artists who have done a fight were on the boat, other than Frontalot and Glen Raphael.

We've managed to snag a few newbies each year after the cruises, and I'm hoping 2 or 3 more will tryout after seeing the panel.